How first impressions of a customer impact effectiveness in an initial sales encounter

First impressions of others affect both the content and outcomes of a variety of interpersonal encounters. In sales encounters, a salesperson’s first impressions of a customer provide a starting point for probing customer needs and for adapting to those needs. This implies that salesperson effectiveness in an initial sales encounter is associated— at least in part—with a salesperson’s first impression of the customer. The reported quasi-experiment is the first study to explore empirically the connection between salespeople’s first impressions, their cognitive structures, and sales effectiveness in a single, initial sales encounter. The results provide an intriguing glimpse into the dilemma salespeople face in trying to establish the basis of a relationship while achieving short-term sales outcomes (e.g., closing a sale, satisfaction). Kleine & Associates Symmetrics Kenneth R. Evans received his D.B.A. from the University of Colorado. He has served on the faculty at Arizona State University and currently serves as associate dean and professor of marketing at the University of Missouri, Columbia. He has published articles in theJournal of Marketing, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, Journal of Advertising, Industrial Marketing Management, and inDistinguished Essays in Marketing Theory. Robert E. Kleine, III, received his Ph.D. from the University of Cincinnati and has served on the marketing faculty at Arizona State University. He is presently chief scholar for Kleine & Associates. His work has appeared in theJournal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Psychology, and in other journals. Timothy D. Landry is a doctoral candidate at the University of Missouri, Columbia. He has presented his work at the American Marketing Association’s conferences. Lawrence A. Crosby received his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. He has served on the marketing faculty at the University of Nebraska and at Arizona State University. He served as managing director of CSM Worldwide, Inc., and is presently chief executive officer of Symmetrics. He has published several articles in theJournal of Marketing, Journal of Consumer Research, and in other journals.